By Monterey Bud

 

On Monday a funny thing happened to the highly contentious folks at D.A.R.E. — someone accidentally hit the ‘Post’ button and ended up publishing an inadvertent pro-marijuana legalization Op-ed piece.

Initially some thought the Drug War propagandists at D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) had an epiphany – a moment of clarity. Unfortunately for the truth, this fleeting moment of lucidity was little more than a Freudian slip.

The long-winded version of their short-lived support goes like this…

The pro-legalization post, “Purchasing marijuana puts kids at risk,” was published in The Columbus Dispatch on Monday, July 27. The author, Carlis McDerment, knows a thing or two about prohibited substances and the pain of bad laws. After a long and distinguished career as a deputy sheriff, McDerment has switched teams and now works with LEAP (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition), and has dedicated his retirement years to challenging the catastrophic War on Drugs.

In response to a previous letter that argued legalized marijuana would harm kids, LEAP’s McDerment responded by pointing out that laws prohibiting marijuana use ultimately make pot more available to juveniles, and therefore more dangerous (and that was posted to the D.A.R.E. website).

“I know from enforcing senseless marijuana laws that children only are being put in more danger when marijuana is kept illegal.”

McDerment continued pointing to the obvious, “I support legalization precisely because I want to reduce youths’ drug use. Drug dealers don’t care about a customer’s age. The answer isn’t prohibition and incarceration; the answer is regulation and education.”

While some might agree that marijuana use could have a few hidden drawbacks for those under 21, McDerment suggestes “Anyone who proposes we outlaw everything dangerous to children would also have to ban stairs, Tylenol, bleach, forks and outlet socks … and definitely alcohol.”

Embarrassed by their accidental pro-marijuana post, D.A.R.E. removed the controversial piece after reading that NYMag.com had made hay of the group’s unintended U-turn in their guiding philosophy.

Proceed to damage control: Hoping to nip this story in the bud, on Tuesday the 28th D.A.R.E. clarified their position to a reporter at the Washington Post. The group pointed out that the pro-pot post was just another mistake and “We do not support legalization.”

And why should they? As long as lobbyists with fat wallets and a weak moral compasses have influence over America’s drug policy, and continue to pump money and fear into the marijuana prohibition machine, D.A.R.E. will likely remain on the wrong side of the marijuana prohibition fence.